Ofcom Controls Threaten BT's Power To Buy Premier League Football Rights

BT's ability to spend heavily at the forthcoming Premier League auction "is under threat after Ofcom proposed restrictions on its wholesale broadband profits," according to Juliette Garside of the London GUARDIAN. Sports rights "have become key in BT's drive to win broadband customers" against competition from TalkTalk and Sky, with the company "offering free subscriptions to sports channels when selling superfast internet connections." But the watchdog "has raised the prospect of tighter controls over the wholesale prices BT charges competitors for piggy-backing on its broadband network." Enders Analysis telecoms analyst James Barford said, "This is a watershed. It discourages BT from spending a lot more money in any future auction, including the Premier League. From Sky's perspective this is excellent news." The move "is likely to dampen BT's appetite to use sport as a loss leader and may force the acceleration of any decision to start charging for the sports channels" (GUARDIAN, 6/19).